Voices
by Shestrun
Summary: A bundle of letters, a handful of memories, and a mystery perhaps destined to remain forever unsolved.  Sequel to Secrets, formerly The Letters.
1. The Beginning

If you saw a character on the show, it isn't mine. Otherwise, I own them.

By the way, since this is a sequel to Secrets, I recommend you read that first. It might clear up some things. Also, Ari (unless otherwise specified or in flashbacks) refers to Ziva's son, not her brother. Got it? Good.

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_My child. _

_I know, I know, this is incredibly weird, writing a letter to a kid who will probably never read it, for that matter won't be able to read _anything_ for several years, probably doesn't even have eyes yet… Note to self: ask that know-it-all-med-student brother of mine about fetal development. But I don't really care. I love you so much -I've loved you since I even suspected you existed, and I can't keep it bottled up. I got that one right, right? I've been writing in English for practice and so fewer people will be able to roofsdrop, but it's a little difficult. _

_I wish I could hold you in my arms right now. I would never let you go. _

_Never. _

_For some reason, I think you might be a girl. Maybe it's just my own wishful thinking, trying to replace my baby sister. _

_I'm not doing this very well, am I? All I'm doing is making myself cry. I think I will write more later, once my eyes are done dripping all over the * paper… _

_Love, _

_Ziva _

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Ari folded the letter and tucked it in the bottom of the small wooden box with a star of David carved on the top. Replacing the stack of remaining letters on top of it, he closed and locked it.

_Why did you never try to find me, Ima? I would have loved to meet you, if nothing else. _

To open the box Agent Gibbs had made for him and start to read the letters had taken over a month. A month of living in his new room, in his new home, with his new family. He had almost decided to never read his mother's letters and just get on with his new life. There was plenty to do, between homework, taking care of Chayim and Nasya, and pestering Charlotte.

But he still had questions. Questions only his mother could answer.

And she was dead. All that was left was a bundle of letters.

Several times over the past few days, he had unlocked the box and taken out the bundle of letters, but hadn't actually mustered up the -whatever it was; courage didn't seem quite right, maybe desire? cost-benefit surplus?- to actually read them.

He'd decided to read one every Sunday night, for whatever reason. That way, the letters would last at the very least several months. It would give him something to do and to look forward to.

Well, that one was rather anticlimactic. But then again, Ima had been young at the time. Odd, how Charlotte seemed to think that adults knew the answer to everything. He'd let that delusion stand; his sister might as well have the chance to be a kid for a while.

He'd never had too many delusions about adults' power- he'd simply put them in the category of busy-work/money-obsessed-people he generally disliked. They didn't know or understand anywhere _near_ as much as they thought they did.

And then he'd gotten practically shoved onto a plane across the Atlantic and abruptly met his mother's friends and father.

Even though each of them had to be at least twenty years older than him (never was he very good guessing at anyone's ages), they treated him more or less like one of their own. They had been honest with him about his dying mother, his nearly-so sister, and somehow, they seemed far more… real, human, despite and because of their shortcomings.

His mother, for example. She'd thought he was a girl.

He didn't think he would ever tell anyone that.

And then there were his baby brother and sister.

Tucking the box of letters back under his comfy bed, he walked into the twins' room.

_Time for siblings. _

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Author's Note: I know it's been a while since I updated, but I share a computer with my friend Liraeyn and she needed it to write a short story for class, so I haven't been writing much lately. Here's a teaser from one of her upcoming stories.

_They all, each and every one of them, would make the same desperate wish at one point or another during the whole tragic saga. Every last one of them. Even the one who would have given all to prevent it. But what if it were granted? _


	2. Troubles then and Now

Not mine… again…

Author's note: Ari in the italics is the Ari from the show. The other one is Ziva's kid, in case you're confused, but since nobody has said that; for that matter, hardly anybody has said much of anything in the reviews… *hint, hint* Also, I have no idea whatsoever how far apart Ari and Ziva are in age, so I'm going with approximately six years, since that fits with Ziva being 18 and Ari being in med school.

Other author's note: (That's the other note, not the other author.) It's been forever since I updated anything, but APs are coming up and I'm getting really busy.

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_Little one, _

_Happy four-months-birthday. Also, happy two-months-anniversary of when I realized that you existed. It was one of the happiest moments of my life. That's even after taking into account how worried I was (and still am) that I will not be able to take care of you, that something horrible will happen to you… _

_I love you, little one. _

_Right now, I'm sitting in my brother's apartment. I came to live with Ari when he went back to med school. He's learning how to be a doctor, did you know that? Did I forget to tell you that? Well anyway, yes, he's smart, always has been, but now he's being a complete nerd about everything he's learning. For example, he says that right now, you are probably learning how to box and somersault, and I should be able to feel it soon. Then he had me stand in this very specific position and pointed out exactly where I do or do not fit his textbooks' models of pregnant women… Apparently, I'm not showing nearly as much as I should be, but he says that's not a problem. _

_Not that I'm complaining, mind you. Ari's a great brother, if a little overprotective. Even if I had the slightest idea who your father is (which I don't, which is bad, which I know) I would never tell him; I know I would find the guy's head on a spear before dawn. Of course, I would probably do the same thing if he ever introduced me to one of his girlfriends… _

_Okay, I meant to write a letter to my child and it turned into a diary… _

_Love, _

_Ziva David _

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Noah's Ark.

It had been one of his favorite stories, back when he'd cared about such things. Back when some of his foster homes would drag him along to church and he'd sit there and some "nice" lady would hand out cookies and tell them stories about people long ago…

He'd liked to imagine living on the ark, playing with the animals, watching new ones get born so he could play with them…

And then it had occurred to him that most of the people on the planet had had to die in order for that to happen-

Nothing like that realization to put paid to daydreaming.

But Charlotte seemed to enjoy it.

The two of them sat on the couch watching Noah fish off the side of the ark (_did they even _have _fishing line back then?_), each holding a younger sibling. The six-month-old twins, Chayim and Nasya, were growing like grass. Not weeds. You didn't like weeds or want them to grow. Grass spread and grew and became beautiful and indestructible…

Ari tickled Chayim's stomach, eliciting a giggle. The baby waved his hand around and beeped Ari on the nose. Ari shoved his baby brother at Charlotte and snatched Nasya onto his lap. His undersize sibling was her usual sedate self and merely clutched at his shirt before bringing it to her mouth and sucking on it. _Trying to nurse? We have a case of mistaken identity here… _

Charlotte giggled. "I think she's hungry."

Balancing Nasya on his hip, Ari wandered over to the fridge and pulled out a bottle. The little girl didn't react when he sat back down; even when he plunked the bottle in her mouth she barely sucked a few times. _This isn't good… _

"Why isn't she drinking?"

Ari hesitated, unsure of why his baby sister wasn't drinking, or of how much he could tell his little sister without her getting unduly worried. "Well, sometimes really young babies haven't learned how to drink yet, like if they're born too early and haven't swallowed enough times to get it down, no pun intended…"

"But I've seen her drink."

Ari shrugged. "Maybe she's too tired. I'll take her back to her room."

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_The door opened to reveal his old room. He had moved out into the old guest room when the baby was born. A little girl, they said. _

_Funny, all he'd ever seen was a bundle. His father had yelled at him when he tried to get a closer look. _

_Now it was the middle of the night, though, and anyway, Papa was off on something for work. Ari had no idea what Ima Rivka would do if she caught him near her baby. She was nice, sort of, but she'd made it clear she didn't want him for a son. _

_He missed his actual mother. They didn't see each other often, just every month or two or… seven… His father would load him into the car and drive to some weird building where he would sit and talk with his mother for a couple of hours. She would sometimes give him candy or a toy or something of that sort… _

_The crib contained one small, pink-sleeper-clad infant. Tiny, messy locks of dark brown hair covered her head and her thumb was planted firmly in her mouth. _

_Smiling, Ari reached in and was about to stroke her hand when something clicked behind him. Someone was at the door. _

"_I'm sorry- I just wanted to see-" he gasped and backed away, bumping into the baby's crib. "Who are you? Why are you-" _

_The shadow reached out a dark hand that clamped over his mouth, silencing him instantly. "One more sound, and I'll kill you and that little princess." _

_Ari nodded, terrified. The shadow slapped a piece of tape over his mouth, yanked his hands behind his back, and taped them together. As the first shadow shoved him roughly out the door, another one slipped in, grabbed a few things from around the room, snatched the pink bundle from the crib, and followed them out. _

Can't get enough air through this -tape- can't get enough to

-think straight-

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Author's note: I _was_ planning on making this a far longer chapter, but then I figured I'd split it up so you guys would get something and not too much at once. Please review!


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